Around June 17, Mayor Wilmot Collins asked his translator what Armenians wear in politics.

He was soon to meet an Armenian mayor, and he couldn’t disappoint. He dressed in a full suit and tie and was stumped when his Armenian counterpart arrived in a white polo and jeans — he’d heard Americans like to dress casually.

They wanted to make each other comfortable, Collins said. It wouldn’t do to start what could be a yearslong relationship on the wrong foot.

Collins spent five days in Armenia last month for something called the U.S.-Armenia Local Democracy Forum. His goal: explain why a people-first government works on a grassroots level, and spark an intercontinental friendship.

Mayor Wilmot Collins, right, and Armenian Mayor Armen Grigoryan of Stepanavan meet for the first time in Yerevan, Armenia, in June. Collins and Grigoryan shared a laugh when Collins dressed nicely to suit Armenian tastes and Grigoryan dressed casually to suit American tastes. Collins discarded his suit jacket and tie to better match Grigoryan.

Collins was joined by four other mayors and state directors, three from California and one from Pennsylvania. He was one of five applicants selected from a nationwide pool.

They landed in the Armenian capital Yerevan for the official forum on June 17 and were visited by President Vahagn Khachaturyan. The pageantry makes some sense, Collins said. This was the first trip of its kind, and the first time high-status American representatives had been to Armenia in decades. The West Asian, landlocked country is formerly a Soviet republic, regaining independence in 1991.

Ambassador (retired) Nina Hachigian, the Department of State special representative for city and state diplomacy, led the trip and was joined by Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs Sarah Morgenthau. 

From there, the American local government representatives were split up, paired with Armenian counterparts leading towns of similar size and layout.

For Collins and Helena, that was the town of Stepanavan, led by Mayor Armen Grigoryan.

Collins noticed some differences in how the local government worked.

“I was in charge of explaining transparency with the public,” Collins said. “Montana has very open meeting laws.”

Specifically, Montana law guarantees citizens a right to know what government meetings are about (such as a required agenda posted early) and a right to participate in the meetings.

Grigoryan didn’t originally understand the necessity, Collins said, but he could tell it was important. The confusion largely came from how mayors are selected in each country.

Mayor Wilmot Collins of Helena, right, discusses open government and transparency with Armenian Mayor Armen Grigoryan of Stepanavan, left, translated by Grigoryan's daughter, Syuzanna Grigoryan.

Americans vote directly on mayors, so beyond legal requirements, politicians are incentivized to earn voter trust. Showing what your meetings are about keeps them from looking shady.

But local leaders in Armenia are voted in by their fellow political party members. There will be multiple elected council members, and the party with the most council members gets to place their leader in office — similar to how the United States’ House majority leader is chosen. 

“So when I said, ‘I work for the people who elected me,’” Collins said, “he thought of other politicians.”

Although there were misunderstandings, both mayors were eager to learn. Collins invited Grigoryan to Helena to shadow local government processes — both in how the city commission works and, by special request of Collins, how tourism works.

“Armenia has so much to offer, but other people don’t know it,” Collins said. On the trip, American leaders visited museums and memorials, including one on the Armenian genocide. “I noticed I was one of few tourists there.”

The preservation of history is something he’d like Helena to learn from the town of Stepanavan, Collins said. A museum holds the home of the city’s namesake.

“It was much more developed than I was expecting,” Collins said. “It’s a proper home.”

Mayor Wilmot Collins of Helena, right, and Armenian Mayor Armen Grigoryan of Stepanavan sign a letter of intent to form a sister-city relationship in June 2024.

While at the forum, Collins and Grigoryan signed a letter of intent to form a sister-city relationship between their towns. For now, it’s just ceremonial, but each mayor has promised to return to their respective councils and ask for it to be finalized.

If it is, Collins will invite Grigoryan to come to Helena for a shadow and tour. Helena is also a sister-city to Isla Mujeres in Mexico, and Montana is a sister-state to Kumamoto, Japan. Another Armenian politician told Collins she was interested in starting a sister relationship with Carroll College.

“This is the beginning of a friendship,” Collins said. “We are the same. We just come from different circumstances.”

Mayor Wilmot Collins of Helena, right, and Armenian Mayor Armen Grigoryan of Stepanavan sign a letter of intent to form a sister-city relationship in June 2024.